Paint holder for painting with roller

ABSTRACT

This specification discloses a painting apparatus for roller painting. A container for the paint, with a surface over which a dipped roller is operated to equalize the paint distribution, is constructed for attachment to a ladder. Detachable fastening means connect the container to the ladder selectively in convenient positions for right- or left-handed painters; and the container is quickly shifted to different levels of the ladder as the painting progresses. The container is also adapted to be used in the same manner as conventional roller paint holders when not working from a ladder.

United States Patent Bonci 1 Feb. 15, 1972 [54] PAINT HOLDER FOR PAINTING WITH ROLLER [72] Inventor: Adolph Bonci, 68 Van Buren St., Pearl River, NY. 10965 22 Filed: Sept. 17,1970

21 App1.No.: 72,975

[52] ILLS. Cl ..l5/257.06 [51] Int. Cl ..B44d 3/14 [58] Field of Search ..15/257.06, 257.05; 248/21 1,

[56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 3,351,970 11/1967 Engh ..15/257.06

1,927,315 9/1933 Kamp... 3,110,921 11/1963 Conner ..15/257.06

2,932,838 4/1960 Duellette 1 5/ 257 .06

FOREIGN PATENTS OR APPLICATIONS 1,300,870 7/ 1962 France ..248/ 210 Primary Examiner-Leon G. Machlin Attorney-Sandoe, I-Iopgood & Calimafde [57] ABSTRACT This specification discloses a painting apparatus for roller painting. A container for the paint, with a surface over which a dipped roller is operated to equalize the paint distribution, is constructed for attachment to a ladder Detachable fastening means connect the container to the ladder selectively in convenient positions for rightor left-handed painters; and the container is quickly shifted to different levels of the ladder as the painting progresses. The container is also adapted to be used in the same manner as conventional roller paint holders when not working from a ladder.

12 Claims, 2 Drawing Figures l PAINT HOLDER FOR PAINTING WITI-I ROLLER BACKGROUND AND SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION Various expedients have been used for painting with a brush from a ladder, but painting with a roller, in spite of its advantages in speed and finish, presents a special problem for painters working from a ladder. After a roller has been dipped in a paint container having a width equal to that of the roller, it is advantageous to roll the roller over some other surface to control the quantity and distribution of the paint before applying the roller to the surface which is to be painted.

This invention provides improved roller painting apparatus that can be used from a ladder with the same convenience as when painting a wall' of a room in which there is a table or bench for-holding the paint container.

The invention has a container with a sump for holding paint and the sump is long enough for a roller to be dipped into the paint evenly across the full width of the roller. A sloping surface in the container, in front of the sump, provides a surface on which the roller can be rolled to removeexcess paint and to distribute the paint evenly. This surface drains into the sump and the entire container is a'stiff unit that connects with a ladder with a rigid enough fastening so that the operation of the roller does not displace the container or shift it into positions that make it awkward to use. The connection to the ladder is quickly and conveniently moved to a higher or lower rung of the ladder, as desired. The same apparatus connects equally well with either side of the ladder for use by rightand left-handed painters.

Other objects, features and advantages of the invention will appear or be pointed out as the description proceeds.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWING DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENT A ladder has a side rail 12 and rungs 14, 15 and 16 spaced from one another and extending into the side rail 12 in conventional manner. A paint container 18 has a paint-holding portion formed by a front wall 20, sidewalls 21 and 22, a backwall 23 and a bottom 24. The sidewalls, backwallland bottom are preferably preferably flat panels, but the front wall has a curved portion 26 which merges into a sloping portion 27 and which then turns downwardly into a vertical portion 28 which is preferably parallel with the backwall 23.

This container can be made of different kinds of sheet material but is preferably made of sheet metal. Some of the walls can be of one-piece construction with others, and the way in which the parts the parts are connected or constructed from common sheets forms no part of the invention. The part of the container that actually holds the paint is a sump 32 at the bottom of the container and formed by the bottom 24, the vertically extending portion 28 of the front wall and the portions of the sidewalls 21 and 22 and backwall 23 which are of comparable height with the vertically extending portion 28 of the front wall.

The container is used with a roller 34, shown in FIG. 2. This roller is of conventional construction and has a rotary cylinder 36 on a frame 38 which has a handle 39. The roller 34 is supported in a position where it is temporarily located when not in use, as will be explained more fully in connection with the handle of the container.

The sump 32 is wide enough to receive the roller. After dipping the roller in the paint in the sump, the roller is rolled against the sloping portion 27 of the front wall 20 to remove the sump where the plate excess paint and to distribute the paint more uniformly on the roller in accordance with conventional practice. Excess paint runs down the sloping portion 27 of the front wall and drains back into the sump 32.

In the preferred construction there is a plate 38 which covers the inside surface of the front wall 20 above the vertically extending portion 28 of the front wall. This plate 38 has an upper edge 40 folded back on itself to hook over the upper edge of the front wall 20 so as to hold the plate 38 in place.

There are discontinuous, embossed ridges 42 on the plate 38 and these ridges 42 slope downwardly toward the centerline of the plate 38. They serve the purpose of distributing the paint on the roller and they provide drainage channels for paint which passes around the edges of the plate 38 and under the plate.

The lowermost ridges 42 preferably project beyond the upper front edge of the sump to provide clearance for paint draining downward between the plate 38 and the sloping portion 27 of the front wall. The hooked upper edge 40 of the front wall preferably holds the plate 38 with slight clearance from the sloping portion of the front wall except at the top of l 38 rests on the front wall. The ridges 42 also add stiffness to the plate 38.

The inside comers of the sump 32 have inserts 46 which fill the comers so that the container can be cleaned more easily when paint is removed and another color paint is to be placed in the container. These inserts may be solid or they may be made of sheet metal with its edges soldered to the bottom and to the walls of the sump.

The container 18 has a handle 48 which extends through openings in the sidewalls 21 and 22 and which is free to pivot on the sidewalls 21 and 22 in a manner similar to a bucket handle. The connections between the handle 48 and the container 18 are located substantially midway between the front and back of the sump so that the principal weight of the container, which is the paint within it, is located directly under the handle 48.

In the preferred construction, the handle 48 extends through the sidewalls 21 and 22 from the inside and the side portions of the handle 48 converge as they extend upward from their connections to the container 18. These connections are indicated by the reference characters 50 in the drawing. They are shown with nuts threaded over screw threads on the handle but various other types of construction can be used.

Because of the extension of the handle 48 through the sidewall 21 and 22 from the inside outward, and the convergence of the side portions of the handle 48 as they extend upwardly, the handle can be folded forward and downward so that it is lowered into the container 18 for most of the length of the handle when the container is stored.

The handle 48 has loops 53 and 54 toward opposite sides of the container. These loops are joined by horizontal portion 55 by which the handle can be conveniently gripped when carrying the container. A connector 56 has an upper hook 58 which hooks over the rung 14 of the ladder, or any other rung, depending upon the elevation of the ladder at which the painting is to be performed. The connector 56 has a lower hook 60 which extends through the loop 53 for supporting the container 18 by the handle 48.

With the container 18 supported from the hook 60, the lefthand side 21 of the container bears against the outside surface of the ladder side rail 12 and it is held against the side rail of the ladder by another hook 64 extending from the container at a location adjacent to the juncture of the sloping portion 27 with the vertically extending portion 28 of the front wall.

With the container connected with the ladder 10 in the manner illustrated in FIG. 1, the container 18 is in a convenient position for a painter standing on the ladder to use the container with a painting roller held in the painter's right hand.

The container can be transferred to the other side of the ladder by disengaging the hook 60 from the loop 53 and by disengaging the hook 64 from the ladder side rail 12. The connector 56 is shifted along the rung 14 to the other side of the ladder and the container 18 is placed on the other side of the ladder with the sidewall 22 against the side rail of the ladder. The hook 60 is then engaged with the loop 54 of the handle 48 and a hook 64' (FIG. 2) extending from the sidewall 22, is hooked over the side rail of the ladder to hold the wall 22 against the side rail. The container is then in position for convenient use by a painter holding the roller in his left hand. For use on a level surface the container has a front support 65 which includes a leg 66 that extends downward from the front wall to the level of the bottom of the sump. A brace 67 connects at its forward end to the lower end of the leg 66 and connects at its rearward end to the front of the sump at the bottom of the container. This construction provides stable support for the container when used on a floor or table instead of a ladder.

The handle 48, connector 56, and the hooks 64 and 64 are preferably made of heavy wire. In the construction illustrated, the hooks 64 and 64' are at opposite ends of a rod 66 which passes through a tube 68 soldered or otherwise secured to the front wall of the container 18. By having the rod 66 both rotatable and longitudinally slideable in the tube 68, the rod can be shifted to the side of the container which is to be hooked to the ladder and the hook 64 or 64 on the other side of the container pulls in against the side of the container. While this construction with the rod 66 rotatable and slideable is a convenient construction, the hooks 64 can be rigidly connected to the container with no relative motion except what limited bending of the hook may be provided for secure friction grip on the side rail of the ladder. Some stiff flexibility in the hooks 64 and 64' is desirable to accommodate what variations are found in the width of ladder side rails. The same is true of the connector 56 which is also stiffiy flexible and which can be bent as necessary to fit ladder rungs of somewhat different cross section.

During temporary interruptions in the painting, the roller 34 can be temporarily stored by hooking it over the handle 48 with the cylinder of the roller extending downward and resting against the top edge of the backwall 23, as shown in FIG. 2.

The preferred embodiment of the invention has been illustrated and described, but changes and modifications can be made and some features can be used in different combinations without departing from the invention as defined in the claims.

What is claimed is:

1. Apparatus for roller painting by a painter standing on a rung of a ladder that has rungs supported at opposite ends by side rails of the ladder, said apparatus including a container having a sump for holding paint into which a roller is dipped to receive its paint, the container having a front wall that extends steeply upward and then slops forwardly, a paint equalizer surface over the forwardly sloping part of the front wall and on which the roller is rolled after clipping, said surface sloping to the sump for drainage of paint into the sump, a first detachable fastening means having a hook at its upper end that fits over a rung of the ladder on the inside ofa side rail and having a lower end connected with the container, said fastening means being shaped for supporting the container from a rung of a ladder but on the outside of the side rail, .and a second fastening means connected to the container and that includes a hook which contacts with the inner side of the side rail for holding a side of the container against the outside of the side rail of the ladder and which also includes a portion that extends across the front of the side rail to prevent the container from swinging rearwardly as the roller is rolled down the paint equalizer surface when the container is in use.

2. The apparatus described in claim 1 characterized by the first detachable means including a handle having the general shape of an inverted U and attached at its lower ends to sides of the container above the sump, and the second detachable fastening means having its hook that hooks around a side rail of the ladder located below the handle and securing the container in firm contact with the outside surface of the side rail.

3. The apparatus described in claim 2 characterized by the first detachable fastening means including two loops, one toward either side of the handle in position to connect with the hook that hooks over a rung of the ladder for holding the container selectively on different sides of the ladder for a rightor left-handed painter, and the second fastening means including different portions at opposite sides of the container for engaging side rails at different sides of the ladder.

4. The apparatus described in claim 1 characterized by the first detachable fastening means including an upper hook that hooks over a rung of the ladder and a lower hook that hooks into the handle for supporting the container, and the second fastening means by contact with the inside and front of the side rail holding the container firmly against a side rail of the ladder so as to prevent both horizontal and tilting movement of the container when in use.

5. The apparatus described in claim 5 characterized by the container having a bottom and having front, back and side walls extending upward from the bottom, the bottom closing the lower end of the sump, and the front wall having its forward sloping portion meeting its steeply upwardly extending portion, that forms the front of the sump, at an elevation substantially above the bottom of the sump, and a plate covering a substantial area of the sloping portion of the front wall and having substantially the same downward slope as the sloping portion of the front wall.

6. The apparatus described in claim 5 characterized by the plate having corrugations therein extending upwardly therefrom, the length of the corrugations extending diagonally in the direction in which paint flows down the slope of the sump, the plate having a lip at its upper end that hooks over the top edge of the front wall for holding the plate in position.

7. The apparatus described in claim 5 characterized by the plate having a clearance between it and the sloping portion of the front wall for drainage of paint that flows in under the plate from the sides thereof.

8. The apparatus described in claim 1 paint-applying roller having a handle and a roller portion that is somewhat shorter than the width of the container, a part of the detachable fastening means including a part over which the roller extends and by which the roller is held with the roll portion resting on the upper end of the backwall of the container for holding the roller in temporarily stored position when the container is connected with a ladder.

9. The apparatus described in claim 1 characterized by the container having a bottom and having the front, and back and side walls extending upward from the bottom, the bottom closing the lower end of the sump and the front wall having its sloping portion sloping downwardly to a level where it meets the sump at an elevation substantially above the bottom of the sump, and a support extending downward below the sloping portion of the bottom and adjacent the front of the container and terminating at substantially the level of the bottom of the sump for supporting the container on a level position when it is removed from the ladder and placed on a table or workbench.

10. The apparatus described in claim 5 characterized by the walls of the container which enclose the sump meeting the bottom of the sump at comers that from generally trihedral angles, and filler pieces in the trihedral angles forming walls across the trihedral angles for preventing paint from entering the comers of the sump.

11. The apparatus described in claim 10 characterized by the fillers being triangular plates connected along their sides with the bottom, front, back and side walls of the sump by paintproof connections that prevent paint from entering the corners of the sump.

12. The apparatus described in claim 1 characterized by the sides of the container being plane and generally parallel to one another so that the container occupies substantially the same relative position with respect to the ladder no matter which side of the ladder the container is connected with.

characterized by a 

1. Apparatus for roller painting by a painter standing on a rung of a ladder that has rungs supported at opposite ends by side rails of the ladder, said apparatus including a container having a sump for holding paint into which a roller is dipped to receive its paint, the container having a front wall that extends steeply upward and then slops forwardly, a paint equalizer surface over the forwardly sloping part of the front wall and on which the roller is rolled after dipping, said surface sloping to the sump for drainage of paint into the sump, a first detachable fastening means having a hook at its upper end that fits over a rung of the ladder on the inside of a side rail and having a lower end connected with the container, said fastening means being shaped for supporting the container from a rung of a ladder but on the outside of the side rail, and a second fastening means connected to the container and that includes a hook which contacts with the inner side of the side rail for holding a side of the container against the outside of the side rail of the ladder and which also includes a portion that extends across the front of the side rail to prevent the container from swinging rearwardly as the roller is rolled down the paint equalizer surface when the container is in use.
 2. The apparatus described in claim 1 characterized by the first detachable means including a handle having the general shape of an inverted U and attached at its lower ends to sides of the container above the sump, and the second detachable fastening means having its hook that hooks around a side rail of the ladder located below the handle and securing the container in firm contact with the outside surface of the side rail.
 3. The apparatus described in claim 2 characterized by the first detachable fastening means including two loops, one toward either side of the handle in position to connect with the hook that hooks over a rung of the ladder for holding the container selectively on different sides of the ladder for a right- or left-handed painter, and the second fastening means including different portions at opposite sides of the container for engaging side rails at different sides of the ladder.
 4. The apparatus described in claim 1 characterized by the first detachable fastening means including an upper hook that hooks over a rung of the ladder and a lower hook that hooks into the handle for supporting the container, and the second fastening means by contact with the inside and front of the side rail holding the container firmly against a side rail of the ladder so as to prevent both horizontal and tilting movement of the container when in use.
 5. The apparatus described in claim 5 characterized by the container having a bottom and having front, back and side walls extending upward from the bottom, the bottom closing the lower end of the sump, and the front wall having its forward sloping portion meeting its steeply upwardly extending portion, that forms the front of the sump, at an elevation substantially above the bottom of the sump, and a plate covering a substantial area of the sloping portion of the front wall and having substantially the same downward slope as the sloping portion of the front wall.
 6. The apparatus described in claim 5 characterized by the plate having corrugations therein extending upwardly therefrom, the length of the corrugations extending diagonally in the direction in which paint flows down the slope of the sump, the plate having a lip at its upper end that hooks over the top edge of the front wall for holding the plate in position.
 7. The apparatus described in claim 5 characterized by the plate having a clearance between it and the sloping portion of the front wall for drainage of paint that flows in under the plate from the sides thereof.
 8. The apparatus described in claim 1 characterized by a paint-applying roller having a handle and a roller portion that is somewhat shorter than the width of the container, a part of the detachable fastening means including a part over which the roller extends and by which the roller is held with the roll portion resting on the upper end of the backwall of the container for holding the roller in temporarily stored position whEn the container is connected with a ladder.
 9. The apparatus described in claim 1 characterized by the container having a bottom and having the front, and back and side walls extending upward from the bottom, the bottom closing the lower end of the sump and the front wall having its sloping portion sloping downwardly to a level where it meets the sump at an elevation substantially above the bottom of the sump, and a support extending downward below the sloping portion of the bottom and adjacent the front of the container and terminating at substantially the level of the bottom of the sump for supporting the container on a level position when it is removed from the ladder and placed on a table or workbench.
 10. The apparatus described in claim 5 characterized by the walls of the container which enclose the sump meeting the bottom of the sump at corners that from generally trihedral angles, and filler pieces in the trihedral angles forming walls across the trihedral angles for preventing paint from entering the corners of the sump.
 11. The apparatus described in claim 10 characterized by the fillers being triangular plates connected along their sides with the bottom, front, back and side walls of the sump by paintproof connections that prevent paint from entering the corners of the sump.
 12. The apparatus described in claim 1 characterized by the sides of the container being plane and generally parallel to one another so that the container occupies substantially the same relative position with respect to the ladder no matter which side of the ladder the container is connected with. 